Daily Picks 11/20: Russ To Bust
Carmelo Anthony scored 10 points in his highly anticipated return to the NBA with the Portland Trail Blazers on Tuesday night during a 115-104 loss to the New Orleans Pelicans.
Wednesday night features a clash between two of the best teams in the Western Conference - the Denver Nuggets and Houston Rockets.
Here’s a look at today’s NBA picks:
BET OF THE DAY:
Houston Rockets @ Denver Nuggets, 9:00 PM:
The Nuggets have a 7-8-1 ATS record against the Rockets at home since 2010-11. (Stat courtesy of Statschecker)
The second and third seeds in the West standings meet in Denver.
Houston (11-3) defeated the Trail Blazers and picked up an eighth consecutive win behind a 36-point performance from James Harden and a 28-point triple-double from Russell Westbrook.
Harden has been the best player in basketball so far, averaging an absurd league-leading 39.2 ppg which has helped lead the Rockets to the best scoring offense in the NBA (119.5 ppg).
The Nuggets have been on a roll, winning six of the last eight games.
Denver (9-3) won a second straight game on Sunday, defeating the Memphis Grizzlies 131-114. Jamal Murray put together a season-high 39 points on 14-of-24 with eight assists and three steals.
Although the Nuggets have had ups and downs at home this season, Denver is typically a tough outfit at home. The Nuggets have 95-41 W/L record at Pepsi Center since 2016-17.
Take Denver to cover the narrow spread and edge out the Rockets.
2u - Denver Nuggets (-2.5) @ -105
New York Knicks @ Philadelphia 76ers, 7:00 PM
Philadelphia has a 17-8 ATS record at home coming off two days rest since 2017-18. (Stat courtesy of Statschecker)
The 76ers (8-5) snapped a two-game losing streak after handling the Cleveland Cavaliers 114-95.
Philadelphia was efficient as a team, shooting over 50 percent from the field led by the efforts of Tobias Harris. He made 12-of-14 attempts for a team-high 27 points.
Ben Simmons contributed a double-double with 10 points and 11 assists, adding four rebounds and two blocks.
The New York Knicks (4-10) have won two of the last three games after also convincingly beating the Cavaliers 123-105 on Monday night.
Julius Randle went off for a season-high 30 points on 12-of-17 shooting with seven rebounds, four assists and two steals.
Philadelphia is undefeated at home this season (4-0) and although I don’t anticipate the Knicks winning outright, the spread is too big for me to bet against.
I’m going with New York to cover the hefty spread (+12.5).
1u - New York Knicks (+12.5) @ -105
Boston Celtics @ Los Angeles Clippers, 10:00 PM:
The Los Angeles Clippers have a 116-52 W/L record at home coming off one-day rest since 2013-14. (Stat courtesy of Statschecker)
The Boston Celtics (11-2) got back on track in Phoenix defeating the Suns 99-85.
Jayson Tatum put together a double-double with a team-high 26 points and 11 rebounds.
Boston’s success this season has come on the defensive side of the ball, allowing the seventh fewest points per game (104.2 ppg).
Meanwhile, Paul George made his long-awaited Clippers debut on Monday night and didn’t disappoint.
George totaled 18 points on 7-of-14 shooting including the go-ahead three-pointer with 25 seconds left as the Clippers (9-5) defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder 90-88.
Kawhi Leonard is questionable against Boston with a left knee contusion but one thing is for certain, once he and George partner up it’ll be hard to slow them down.
I like the Clippers to cover the spread (-5).
1u - Los Angeles Clippers (-5) @ -110
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